ALB adds an international terminal, at least temporarily

Albany International Airport officials closed off the lower level of Concourse A today so that passengers on a flight from Newfoundland could clear customs and immigration after weather diverted to plane to Albany.

The flight, a regional jet en route to Newark, was one of three forced to land at Albany because of the weather.

Airport officials had customs and immigration officers, as well as officers from the Transportation Security Administration, on hand to clear the passengers, but the plane was cleared to complete its flight before that could happen. Cape Air, which normally occupies the lower A concourse, shifted its operations to the lower B concourse, airport spokesman Doug Myers said.

A flight from Toronto also was diverted to Albany, but those passengers had already cleared U.S. customs formalities before boarding the plane at Pearson International Airport.

Severe weather — heavy rain, high winds, thunderstorms — delayed flights up and down the East Coast. Myers said delays in the New York City region reached five hours at one point.